Pete Hegseth Updates on US Nuclear Testing, ‘Golden Dome’

U.S. Accelerates “Golden Dome” Missile Defense as Nuclear Testing Plans Loom

The United States is ramping up development of its ambitious Golden Dome missile defense system, with Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth confirming progress at the Reagan National Defense Forum in California. The project, unveiled by former President Donald Trump in May, is designed to defend against advanced threats, including ballistic, cruise, and hypersonic missiles.

Hegseth emphasized that the system will provide “tangible protection” for the U.S. before the end of the current administration. He drew parallels to President Ronald Reagan’s Strategic Defense Initiative, popularly known as “Star Wars,” noting that modern technology now makes such a system feasible.

The Golden Dome, inspired by Israel’s Iron Dome, will use space-based sensors and interceptors capable of neutralizing missiles even if launched from orbit. However, unlike Iron Dome, which targets short-range threats, the Golden Dome aims to counter long-range missile attacks from nations like Russia, China, and North Korea.

Over 1,000 companies are expected to contribute to this multi-billion-dollar project, which has already faced delays due to previous government shutdowns and uncertainties around the initial $25-billion budget. Experts note that while the U.S. currently lacks a comprehensive system to intercept intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) strikes from Russia or China, it could handle smaller-scale threats from North Korea.

The push comes amid growing global investment in hypersonic weapons, which travel at over five times the speed of sound and can maneuver mid-flight, making them extremely difficult to intercept.

Hegseth also addressed nuclear testing, stating that the U.S. plans to maintain readiness on an “equal basis” with other nuclear nations. Although President Trump suggested resuming nuclear tests, details remain unclear, with Energy Secretary Chris Wright clarifying that full-scale nuclear explosions are not currently planned. The U.S. remains a signatory to the 1996 Comprehensive Nuclear Test-Ban Treaty, though it has not ratified it, and Russia withdrew its ratification in 2023.

Several Democratic lawmakers have expressed concern over these developments, reintroducing legislation aimed at countering what they describe as the Trump administration’s reckless nuclear policy.

Hegseth described the Golden Dome as a potential “gamechanger” for national defense, insisting that the U.S. will never be “vulnerable to nuclear blackmail.”